#ily clarence mwa mwa

[hiyoriddle]

as sweet as you.

clarence x gn!reader | 1k words | you call him over to make gingerbread houses together.

merry christmas! this was written by someone that has never made gingerbread houses before…

you didn’t plan this at all, it’s just that he was the first person that came to your mind when you saw the gingerbread house kit at the store. the next thing you knew, you placed it inside your cart along with your groceries. when you got home, you stared at the box, wondering if you should text him.

now with your phone in hand, you suddenly thought it was a silly idea. clarence is busy enough, he wouldn’t take time off his day just to make a gingerbread house with you… yet you find yourself sending a text anyway. he replied almost immediately, mentioning that he bought a kit himself, and that he’d love to make it with you.

you prepared the materials you needed in the kitchen, you were pretty clueless when it came to making gingerbread houses, cael does mostly everything while you stuck with designing it. the knock on your door snapped you out of your thoughts, you walked over to open it.

“i’m guessing you need help with assembling it?” clarence asked with a chuckle, you notice the red box in his hand and he shows it to you. “this is what i usually get, it’s a bit harder to make, but i can assure you that it tastes better than most kits.”

“then i’m glad i called an expert.” you smile, opening the door wider and stepping aside. “come in.”

once he got inside, your cat ran towards him instantly. clarence got on one knee, petting the feline while it happily purrs in response. “he must’ve missed me.”

“i think he loves you more than me.” you pout. you found out early on that animals are naturally drawn to him, which you thought was cute, even if it meant fighting for your cat’s attention when he’s around.

he played with your cat some more then you both proceeded to the kitchen, setting up some other stuff before starting. clarence has his sleeves rolled up and it takes every ounce of your self control not to stare and think about how muscular his arms are.

he quickly goes over the basics, explaining everything you need to know. “it’s quite simple, we just need to make sure it holds up.” he says.

“well, at least i can make it look pretty.” you reply, handing him an apron. you put yours on, it’s in your favorite color, of course. he puts his on as well and you finally begin.

you carefully follow his lead, wary about messing it up. icing is usually used to “glue” the cookies together, but clarence shared a trick with you, he showed how caramelized sugar can be used as an alternative.

“like this.” he dipped one side into the sugar and pressed it onto the side of a different cookie, it was sturdy and it held in place. you did the same, albeit a little more messy, but it didn’t look half bad. “you can use icing to hide it later.” he adds.

you assembled all the cookies together and you felt proud of yourself, grinning as you showed him your work. “pretty neat, huh?”

he smiles back at you. “it’s great for your first time. good job.”

the praise made your cheeks feel warm all of a sudden, and you quickly turn away. “thanks… ah, we can start decorating now.”

now you were back in your element. other than the icing, there were little candies on the counter that you both used to decorate. you already had a design in mind, so you’re trying your best to recreate it. sometimes you turn to clarence and catch him smiling fondly towards you, leaving you with butterflies in your stomach.

“finished?” he asks.

you put the piping bag down, wiping your hands on the apron. “i think so.”

“it’s beautiful.” he says, his voice sincere. you’re not looking at him, yet you can see from your peripheral vision that his eyes weren’t exactly on your gingerbread house. he pushes his glasses up. “mine doesn’t stand a chance against yours.”

“yours probably taste better anyway.” you shrug, and you get an amazing idea. “clarence, come closer.”

he’s confused at your sudden request, but he takes a few steps towards you anyway. with a sly smirk, you wipe the icing on your finger onto his nose. he blinks, surprised, then he laughs. “you’re not getting away with that so easily.”

you were almost too distracted by his bright smile to notice the amount of icing that he was scooping up with his fingers, you run to the other side and raised your hands in surrender. “hey, that’s too much!”

he turns the tables on you, mimicking the smirk you gave him earlier. “really? i don’t think it is…”

and so, your little food fight began.

your faces were practically covered in icing once you finished, filling the kitchen with fits of giggles and laughter, you both had to stop because you still had to eat what you made. you cleaned yourselves up, and you made two cups of hot chocolate to go with the gingerbread.

“i kind of don’t want to eat it.” you place the red mug on the counter and sit next to him, admiring your work.

“we can always make it again.” with that being said, he snaps a piece of his gingerbread house apart and pops it in his mouth. “here, try it.” he takes another piece and you open your mouth slightly, leaning forward. he snickers and feeds it to you without another word.

you ate the gingerbread as you talked, his definitely tastes better. eventually the two of you moved to the couch with your mugs in hand. your cat, not wanting to be left out, decided to make himself comfortable in the space between.

“thank you for today. i enjoyed it.” clarence tells you, his lips curved upwards in a subtle smile, a faint pink dusting his cheeks.

you return his smile, resting your head on his shoulder. “me too… merry christmas, clarence.”

“merry christmas.”

you’re definitely doing this again next year.